Johnson Loses Her Bid For Leadership Position

WASHINGTON — Connecticut Rep. Nancy L. Johnson, R-6th District, came up well short Tuesday in her bid to win a position in the House Republican leadership.

Voting behind closed doors and by secret ballot, House Republicans decided to give conservative Rep. Bill McCollum of Florida another term as vice chairman of the party conference, the post Johnson, a moderate, was seeking. The tally was 93-70.

On the Democratic side, Connecticut Rep. Sam Gejdenson was unanimously re-elected for another term as a member of the Democratic Steering and Policy Committee. That panel recommends members for committee assignments and chairmanships. Its decisions are usually followed by the full Democratic caucus.

Gejdenson, D-2nd District, said his success in gaining another term on the committee would help him "advocate individuals that have a knowledge of the economic state of our region."

The position Johnson sought was one of three contested in the House Republican leadership, and in all three the more conservative candidate prevailed. The leaders were chosen in two days of balloting.

But both Johnson and McCollum said after the vote that they thought ideology had little to do with their race. Rather, they said, party members agreed with McCollum's argument that he had done a good job and there was no reason to oust him. Other party members agreed.

The results of the leadership races mean the House Republican hierarchy will consist entirely of white male conservatives, a fact Johnson acknowledged to reporters after the vote was taken.

"I regret that our leadership will not reflect the breadth of thinking that makes our party strong," she said, "nor follow the example of men and women working together that is proving so powerful in the private sector."

One of Johnson's main arguments in running for the post was to bring more diversity to the leadership. Voting for her would have added a woman, a moderate and a New Englander, she said.

McCollum said there is a place for women and moderates in the Republican leadership and suggested Johnson might have won had she run for the lesser position of conference secretary. Johnson, however, noted there also was a race for secretary and said that was not the post she wanted.

Republican analysts said last week that Johnson faced an uphill battle in trying to unseat McCollum, who had held the post four years.

Johnson said before the vote that her candidacy was an effort to turn the Republican Party in a more moderate direction. Even though she lost, she said that effort would continue, although she declined to say specifically what her next move would be. "There are a lot of us talking," she said, referring to other Republican moderates.

In other contested races, House Republicans elected the more conservative candidate as conference chairman (Dick Armey of Texas) and secretary (Tom DeLay of Texas). In both cases, party members said, ideology was much more of a factor than in the Johnson-McCollum contest.